Goodbye Mac… we will surely miss you and know you will miss us too. We hope you enjoy your retirement in the land of the rising sun! As a goodbye, we decided to participate in the latest Internet meme – Cat Bearding – Mac wasn’t very cooperative… we guess he didn’t want to see us go…
We are really happy to see that Mac has been settling into his new home in Japan.
He was quite sick after we first moved here, but Mac has grown much stronger recently and seems to be loving his new home. There are lots of pillows and fluffy warm places for him to relax and wile away the day. There is also an area where he can go outside and enjoy the sights, sounds, smells and breezes of the outside world. As far as we know, Mac has never even been outside on his own, so it is like a little adventure for him. As the weather gets warmer, he has been doing some more exploring and meditation in this area. We think it will be his favorite place when the weather becomes incredibly hot and humid.
We will miss Mac when we go to China, and know he will miss us too, but this new home seems like it will be great for Mac!
Last weekend was eventful.
Chiz’s friends organised a BBQ lunch in Akigase Park in Saitama Prefecture. Unfortunately, it was quite cold day and we could not leave the grill stove for a while. Yet, as having good company made us forget the coldness and enjoyed the time.
Also we had a great time with our old friends who took us to a Ring party on Saturday. It was great to see some of our old friends and also new faces there. We had a fun night and relaxing Sunday. It’s always nice to be around good friends. We surely missed it when we were away from Tokyo.
Mac seems to be enjoying his new heater, Kotatsu and Japanese stove. Even though spring has come and Sakura season is ending, the weather is still cold. We are also glad to see him enjoying his new environment especially after being sick for a while. We, including Mac, are hopping that summer comes soon!
It has been really great being back in Japan. We have enjoyed seeing friends & family, visiting our favorite places and shopping, taking baths and using Toto toilet seats (I love those things!). One of the most enjoyable things though has been eating the amazing food here! We have been privileged to have Chiz’ mom cooking for us… and wow, she is an amazing chef! Every meal seems to have millions of delicious side dishes and we can’t get enough of them!
We have also brought out cat, Mac, to live in Japan and he seems to be enjoying his new home. He really enjoys all the soft cushions on the floor and the warm places near the heaters and under the kotatsu (a table that is covered by a big blanket with a heater at the bottom). Mac’s favorite place is relaxing underneath.
We have also been lucky to be in Tokyo during cherry blossom time. All over the city the trees are in full bloom! The only bad part is that this is a horrible time for my allergies : (
Here are some picts of delicious food, cherry blossoms, and Mac from the beginning of our trip in Japan.
I decided to make my own cat food for Mac who is a 12 year-old Cornish Rex cat. Although having a cat as a pet is as popular as dogs, I noticed there are more options for dogs than cats, especially very limited options for senior cats. Less toys, treats, and food. Especially when it comes to wet food, it is very limited for senior cats. Perhaps, older cats do not need to be treated as well as younger cats…? Well, as far as I know senior cats have their own tastes; some only like meat and some only like fish, like younger cats. Some like chunky food in gravy and some like smashed food in jelly. I noticed that Mac tends to like smashed food in jelly and I only found two or three wet food options. Unfortunately, some brands only sell certain flavors of senior food all together in one box, so I cannot pick just what he likes. Some senior food is quite expensive, and they only sell food indicated as “7+”. There is 5 years gap between Mac’s age and 7-year-old cat. I often wonder if what I feed him really suits his age.
So, this is why I decided to try to make my own cat food.
First, I googled websites witch contained many cat food recipes for older cats. I have to admit that there is quite a lot of information and some of it is quite confusing. As a result of spending so many hours/days googling, I summarised what is good for senior cats to eat.
Chicken breast, chicken and beef liver, white fish such as founder, horse mackerel/Japanese mackerel and fluke, some vegetables such as carrots, cabbage, corns, peas, broccolis, and pumpkin, cottage cheese, eggs, sesame, white rice, flour, black beans, and corn oil.
Second, I tried to find as simple a recipe as possible, since I do not own any sophisticated tools, such as blenders.
Third, I tried to focus on more nutrition than tastes cats tend to like. Since he is a 12 year-old cat with poor dental condition, I wanted to give easy-to-eat food with appropriate nutrition.
What I prepared: Chicken liver, Chicken breasts, Flake fish, Carrots White rice (1/2 JP cup – Sunrice Brand – short grain) White sesame Cottage cheese, Eggs and Broccoli
How I cooked (The first 3 steps are the same in all the dishes):
1. Make rice
2. Cut chicken liver and breast into small pieces and boil.
Boil Flake fish. (*Do not boil them together)
3. Grate carrots
[Chicken Liver and Rice]
4. Once rice is ready, put 1 big tablespoon of rice into a saucepan with 1 cup of rice. And boil until water reduces to about half the amount.
5. Add 1 teaspoon of graded carrots and three or four tablespoons of chicken liver. Boil until water reduces to almost none.
6. Smash with a smasher until all ingredients get mushy.
[Chicken Breast and Rice]
4. Put 1 big tablespoon of rice into a saucepan with 1 cup of rice. And boil until water reduces to half the amount.
5. Add 1 teaspoon of graded carrots, a half of teaspoon of sesame and three or four tablespoon of diced chicken breast. Boil until water reduces to almost none.
6. Smash with a smasher until all ingredients get mushy.
7. Add one teaspoon of cottage cheese and mix well.
(This photo is with a bit of broccoli.)
[Fish and Rice]
4. Put 1 big table spoon rice into a source pan with 1 cup of rice. And boil until water reduces to half the amount.
5. Add 1 teaspoon of graded carrots and boil until water reduces to almost none.
6. Add egg yolk and mix well.
7. Smash with a smasher until rice gets mushy.
8. Break a piece of fish into small pieces and add into the saucepan.
9. Add a teaspoon of cottage cheese and mix well.
*During step #5, you can also add a small amount of fish broth or chicken broth, but make sure those do not contain nay salt. If they do, make sure you add very small amount. I usually do not use chicken broth if it contains salt, since it is not good for cats.
Usually, the above amount can be served as three meals. Store them in a fridge and whenever you serve, add a bit of hot water to make it loose. Left over ingredients are stored in a freezer in separate containers.
*Freezing meat also kills some bacteria, which can be harmful for senior cats that live indoors. So, when I have left over chicken breast / minced chicken breast and fish, I chop it well and freeze it before cooking. Then, of course, when I cook it, I cook it very well.
Result: Mac seems to like all the food, especially the chicken liver and rice. He ate everything in his plate, which made me smile 🙂
I also noticed that it would be less mess if I start smashing the food when the water starts reducing. This way, the food remains a bit watery if your cat needs more water to hydrate.
HOWEVER, a week later, I found one problem!! Mac started becoming constipated!! 🙁 I was so shocked that I could not forgive myself until he got back to a normal condition. Old cats tend to be constipated and here are some tips of what to add to those cats’ meal.
– Pumpkin
– Bran
– I also gave him small pieces of cheese since cheese gives him diarrhea. This helped him too.
Conclusion: Since I am still a beginner at making cat food, I decided to give Mac both my own cat food and sold wet food. When I give food, I make sure I spread it flat in his bowl so that it takes him time to eat. When he eats too quickly, he throws up right after finishing his meal.. Also, I try to give him a small amount of meal a few times a day. There is also dry food available for him to eat if he feels the meal is not enough. 🙂
Meet Mac. He has a strange addiction. He likes to lick the water from freshly used showers…
His addiction is so bad that he was recently on the tv show “My Strange Addiction.” If you are unfamiliar with the show, you can watch a clip here.
The recent episode with Mac can be viewed below. Enjoy:
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Since we are not living in Australia permanently, it’s wrong to adopt an animal. Instead, we decided to be foster carer for a cat. We applied months ago, but nothing was available. Just last week we got a call that there was a cat named Mac who needed a home. He is a 12-year-old Cornish Rex.
He was first sent to another foster carer sometime last year with his sister. However, because of his age, he could not get along with any other cats anymore. It is understandable because when we googled Cornish Rex, it was described as ‘needy’ in a nice way. Yes, he needs all our attention when he is awake. When he is asleep, he does not care…. Unfortunately, we cannot say that he is a pretty cat. He is rather ugly…. but, he has got his charm and we like him a lot. He cannot open his eyes wide because his eyelids are too large. It should have been corrected by surgery when he was young. Now he is too old so that it is not so recommended to undergo the surgery. So, he has squinty eyes that are also cute and remind us of an old man.
Some days, we struggled with him because he woke us up a couple of times in the night. We are trying to have him awake during the day and sleep with us through the night. It is getting better but we are still trying. Hopefully, we will have a similar routine soon.
Welcome to our home, Mac!!
